Is Your Pet Vomiting? Why Getting to the Cause Can Be Tricky

There are many reasons a dog or cat may vomit, ranging from an unseen inappropriate tidbit picked up on a walk to an infection or just plain stress. In many cases, the occasional problem responds to simple dietary changes or medications that control vomiting regardless of the cause. Sometimes the problem disappears on its own as quickly as it arose. When vomiting continues, however, and is associated with other signs or contains blood, it can be tedious and expensive to get to the true cause of the problem.

The take-home message: You, as the pet’s primary caretaker, are invaluable when it comes to giving your veterinarian the right clues to help inform which direction testing should take.

If you keep a diary of the problem, including the timing and appearance of the vomit; how it affects eating, appetite and stool quality; a description of what your dog looks like when vomiting; as well as any other thing that just “doesn’t seem right,” it can make finding a cause — and stopping the problem — that much easier.

If your pet vomits in several different situations, then it is helpful to note that as well. For example, motion sickness in dogs is a common problem. “Car sickness,” however, can happen at different times — before the car is started, during the drive or immediately after a car ride. A dog who becomes nauseated before the car is in motion obviously has an anxiety component that requires addressing his nervousness as well as the actual motion.

Why a Diagnosis Can Be Challenging

When presented with an illness, medical professionals are trained to compare the signs to a rather extensive list of possible causes. In the case of vomiting, that list goes from the simple to the complicated: